According to this article from the New York Post titled, “The Pen is as Mighty as the Sword”—and, anecdotally speaking, from various tweets I’ve seen over the last months—it seems that Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire mania has had a grip on New York City of late.

As the lede says:

Next time you’re on the subway, look around. Chances are someone near you is engrossed in a George R. R. Martin paperback.

The article goes on to quote various fans and readers who’ve rushed to reading the series after having had a taste of it thanks to HBO’s award-winng series, and reveals that the novels are currently the, “best-selling science fiction/fantasy series” for Barnes and Noble (which, as an aside, are holding a lottery—preorder the DVD or Blu-Ray online, and be entered into a chance to win one of five copies of episode 8, “The Pointy End”, written by the screenwriter ... who just happens to be one George R.R. Martin). Last but not least, Martha Harbison, a

senior Editor of Popular

Science and a member of the Brotherhood without Banners fanclub provides some perspective from long-term fans who’ve been following the series from the start.

The article also notes that the Kindle edition of A Dance with Dragons, the 5th book in the series, was the top seller in NYC in the month of its release (as, indeed, it was in much of the rest of the United States). The novels have been selling very well indeed this year, with the four-book boxed set ranking #9 on Amazon.com’s bestsellers of 2011 list, and A Dance with Dragons is at #13.